Kung Fu Panda: Afterstory
by funkydude24
Summary: After the defeat of Kai, Po and Tigress marry each other but that's not enough! The dumpling has to go through loads of stuff, very cruel stuff that'll kill one.
1. Chapter 1: All Is Lost

**After** Po defeats Kai, he then marries to Tigress and both then live happily somewhere in the Valley of Peace in their own little house. Both still do some Kung Fu stuff but on knowing that Tigress is having a baby, Shifu asks tigress to have a rest until the baby is born.

During that time, Viper does the chores of their houses while also taking care of Tigress. With time, Po's excitement of becoming a dumping dad, increases as the days passes and finally the day becomes when the dumpling has to become the dad.

While Po is inside the delivery room and Tigress is going through pain, he tries to comfort her. Ping, Li, Shifu and Viper are waiting outside. A lady doctor in-charge of Tigress, tells a most tragic truth to Po that breaks his heart, shattering to pieces. She tells that the condition Tigress is going through, is very critical. Either the mother or the little daughter must be saved. One among them has to die and Po has to decide that.

On hearing such a thing, Po is shocked and suffers the physical trauma. He has no choice left. He is nothing but all mute. Tigress, while suffering through so much pain, holds Po's hand and says in her dying voice,"Po… save our child. I want to see her happy. Po, please… save her. I have spent my life. It's the time for our child now."

The panda, on hearing that, cries out,"No, Tigress! I want to save both of you! Please, don't leave me like this! There must be a way!" His face is wet with tears and so is that of Tigress but she has a gentle smile on her face as she says,"Po… please. Let our child… live."

"Ti! No! I want you to stay with me! You are hard-core, right?! You can go through this, right?! You'll have to go through this!" "We have no time!"

The female bunny says,"We have to hurry up! We've only one herbal drop to save one's life! If we don't hurry, both of them will die!" There's only one drop in the surgical needle hardly found in the whole valley. The herbal drop can save the life either that of child or that of mother.

Po, bursts out in tears again, confused in what to answer. Tigress, meanwhile, starts to lose consciousness, going soon to die along with here child. Stuck between two very difficult choices, Po is going through such a tragedy as he watches Tigress fainting. The sound echoes in his ears and he doesn't know what to do.

Suddenly, Tigress grabs the needle from the bunnies hand and injects it in her stomach, right into the body of the child. "Tigress! What did you do?!" Po cries and Tigress answers with a dying smile,"I saved our child, Po. It's my time to go. I love you, Po."

"No! No! No! NO! NO! NO!" Po repeats constantly as he watches the life of her beloved fading away. Tigress still murmurs in a very low voice,"I love you. I love y-" and she's gone forever, leaving Po with all of his sorrows alone. The grip of her hand looses and her hand falls down, indicating that she left Po forever.

After a while, Po comes out of the delivery room, having her little white and black stripped tigress baby in her hand while his face, wet with tears and his eyes, fully red and puffy, and the moment he comes out, he falls on his knees. This shocks everyone outside the room and at once, everyone rushes, gathering around him, asking,"Po, what happened?!"

"Tigress…" Po sniffles,"She's gone!" This shocks everyone too much, especially Shifu and Viper. as Shifu and Viper hears, they both rush at once to the room inside.

A moment of sheer happiness is changed to a sorrowful one, filled with tragic memories. Everyone, on knowing that fact, suffers in pain, both the Valley of Peace and the Panda Village are there at Tigress' funeral covered in white. The happiness turning so much into despair, it was unexpected. The days pass, the seasons change but the scars remain the same, filled with the same pain…


	2. Chapter 2: Loneliness

**The** air is blowing, taking all the rotten leaves along with itself. The season has changed. Po has now left the Jade Palace, the Kung Fu along with her little four years old daughter Ming, handling her to Shifu, and the panda now lives a solitary life, almost going a single day in the whole month for his old goose dad at the shop.

The Jade Palace these days remains empty for Shifu is now too old to teach anything but meditate. The remaining furious four left the palace, going to their own valleys to teach and spread further Kung Fu.

In the Palace, the only voice that echoes around is that of the little Ming playing with her action figures, sometimes also with the wooden dummy as Shifu trains her a little bit of Kung Fu.

With the departure of just one girl, everything is gone, turning to black and white. The panda doesn't care anymore about her daughter and is now selling some vegetables in front of his little house that used to be filled with cheers and happiness.

Now, Po has given up on everything, even on his own life. He eats less, rarely goes outside in the valley, tries to avoid people around.

Now, the concerned panda has always his face full of wrinkles due to the irritation caused by every little stuff. He likes nothing and dislikes everything, even his own self. The panda now, is no longer the panda that he used to be.

All of his fame as being the Dragon Warrior is forever gone now. Now, all that Po do is just sell some food stuff and then eaten something rough from a shop nearby, and then going back to home with a little amount of money left. He has become very lousy now.

Shifu, as he leaves for a city far away, leaves Ming at the house of the panda, asking the panda to care for her but the panda, in his solemn words, speaks,"Okay, Shifu, you can go, but don't expect me to take care of her. I won't be here for the rest of the day just to change her diapers."

"She has now grown enough that she doesn't need any diapers, Po." replied back the old and wise Master and added,"I must leave now, but as soon as I arrive, I'll pick her up again. For now, good bye, and good luck." And Shifu leaves in a rickshaw.

"Yeah" Po murmurs,"You'd better hurry up, Shifu."

As the panda sees Shifu go away, he then goes back into the house. Po then sits near the table and starts eating some tasteless rice. The silent gazes from the cute orange eyes from behind the curtain. The irritated panda notices that gaze as he eats.

"What was her name again?" The panda murmurs in a tired way, and then calls,"MING! Come out or the dinner will get cold!"

Those eyes hide behind the curtain as the cute little Ming notices her dad glance at her. "Seriously, she's so frustrating." The concerned panda mutters again and then again calls out,"Just hurry up and come over already, Ming!"

At once, the cute little white and black patched baby tigress comes out, and slowly and gradually walks as she sits in front of her dad. Without even glancing at once, the panda starts eating again but Ming, she just sits and looks at her bowl of rice.

"Go and eat it. What are you waiting for?" The panda asks in a dead tone. "N-Noodles." The cute little voice replies.

"What?!" The same tired voice.

"Noodles. Papa Ping's noodles."

"What?! So you want noodles?"

"Y-Yes." The cute scared tone of Ming.

"I don't know how to make them. If you wanna eat, just survive on the rice then."

"Papa Fu... told me that Papa Po m-made them before."

"Papa Fu? You mean Shifu? Who knows?" The panda shrugs.

"But... Ming wants noodles."

Po sighs,"Oh, seriously." and gets up as he adds,"Okay. I'll make you some."

The house has nothing but complete silence in it. While Po makes the noodles, little Ming gazes at him with her big orange eyes. Soon, Po brings the hot bowl of noodles and puts forth on the table. Little Ming, still silent like statue.

"Now what? Why aren't you eating?" the panda inquires.

"Ming can not eat with the sticks."

"So what?!" The panda gets annoyed.

"Papa Fu feeds me with the spoon."

"Oh great!" the panda mutters,"It's even worse than changing diapers." and gets up again, saying,"Just hold on."

Again, he goes to the kitchen and brings back a spoon, and then feeds her little daughter as if he doesn't want to feed her at all but little Ming, she eats and gulps down every single noodle with sheer happiness. Her fear from her dad seems to decrease a little. The giant panda still remains the same: dark and gloomy.

At night, the panda sleeps in his room, leaving the little Ming in the other room all alone. The door that of the panda's room opens and the person that enters inside, is little Ming. Getting up from his deep sleep, Po asks as he yawns,"Just why do you keep disturbing me?!"

"Ming... Ming is... scared!" Ming stutters as she holds the action figures of her parents.

The concerned panda falls on the pillows as he responds,"Okay. Just sleep by my side but try not to harm me with your claws."

Happily, Xiao Ming jumps into the blanket and right before closing the eyes, kisses both of her action figures as she murmurs,"Good night, Mama Ti, Papa Po." and then sleeps. Po sees her do that but that heart-melting scene doesn't affect the panda at all. As Xiao Ming sleeps, Po closes his eyes as well.

In the middle of the night, Po gets up again and checks out whether her daughter is sleeping or not. He finds her daughter sleeping as peaceful as ever. Po comes out of the room in a stealthy way and then looks at the action figure of Tigress in his palms, with the eyes almost about to shed tears.

With the trembling hands, Po gently touches the face of that action figure and a tear falls on that figure.

"Tigress." The sad and sorrowful panda whispers," Tigress, please come back! I can't... I can't take it any more! Please, Tigress! Why did you leave me when I need you the most? Why?! I need you, Tigress! I need you now to look after Ming! I need you to look after me! I'm broken, Tigress! Please, heal me! Please! Come back!"

The panda starts literally crying. His face is fully wet with tears, tears gleaming with the moonlight reflecting in the lounge. He sobs and cries while his heart is bursting from pain but he doesn't want his little daughter to hear him crying.

The action figure of her long lost wife, he suddenly hugs it and bursts into even more tears. His gleaming tears trickle down his fluffy cheeks, dripping on the floor. That whole night, the broken and grief-filled panda spends it crying till the light of the morning sun enters the lounge. Po doesn't know on what time his eyes close and he falls into sleep.

Xiao Ming, in that early morning, comes out of the room while holding Po's action figure as she yawns, and finds out her papa Po sleeping on the floor wet 'cause of his tears. Not only that, when she sees Po holding Tigress action figure to his heart while sleeping, a bright smile appears on her little chubby face. She then slowly walks and puts down the action figure that of Po, right beside that of Tigress and then brightly smiles again. It appears as of for that little Ming, the two lovers are reunited again.


	3. Chapter 3: Tears

**The** next day, the heart-broken panda gets up as he yawns, and when he finds the two action figures, Po and Tigress, lying beside him, a gentle smile appears on the chubby face but then Po, as he sees his own action figure, becomes curious,"Who put that here?"

Little Ming in the while, appears out of the kitchen with a tray having some cookies. Also, there is a cup of tea too. Po startles as he sees her little daughter, and in an instant, hides the two wooden figures behind himself.

"Good morning, Papa!" The sweet and heart-melting voice of Ming as she puts down the tray. The panda doesn't answer but asks,"Where'd you get these cookies from?"

"Ming brought these from the market for Papa Po. Papa Fu told Ming that Papa Po loves cookies. It makes Papa Po happy."

"This thing is outta my concern." replies solemnly the cold-hearted panda,"The only thing that I care about is me being alone. Listen, Ming. I care only about myself. I am no more your Papa Po." The cruel words break the little heart of xiao Ming as the smile fades away, turning into sadness.

The panda continues,"Look. You're here only for a few days so don't act like my daughter. Do what Shifu told you to and lemme do my stuff. When Shifu arrives, you'll be gone forever then. Remember that I'm not your dad, or papa, or whatever you call me, and you're not my daughter, okay?"

After getting no reply but a bowed head and a sad face of that little chubby Ming, the cruel panda adds,"I'll take it as a _Yes_." and gets up and leaves the place.

With a sad face, little cute Ming mumbles as she holds her tears,"But... But Ming only wants to talk to you, Papa Po." but the brave Ming doesn't shed a single tear at all. The two wooden figures catch her eyes and she picks them up and mumbles,"Mama, Ming promises that Ming will bring back Papa Po to home." and the cute smile appears again.

It's the afternoon that the solemn panda, as usual, washes the dishes. He turns and finds the little cute Ming standing behind, holding a scroll in her hand.

"What?" The same cold and solemn voice.

"Papa Fu asked Ming to show you this."

"Now what's this?!" Po roars as he takes the scroll and opens it.

" _Po_ ,

 _I want you to take a good care of your daughter. It might take me a day or two to come back that's why I want you to bring Ming to the Fields of Huiyi as soon as possible. I'll be there waiting for you two. Please, bring her to me and then you can leave._

 _Good luck on your journey!_

 _Your Master,_

 _Shifu."_

"Wait, WHAT!" The panda booms,"The Fields of Huiyi! That's a couple of hours away! Shifu, it's not fair!" The little Ming giggles as she sees her panda dad burst like this.

"What gives?!" rants Po with a fierce look on that dumpling-like face.

"N-Nothing."

The giant panda sighs,"Hurry up, Ming. We have to leave right now. Pack your stuff and get ready. We've gotta go to the Field of Memories before it's too late."

Xiao Ming nods and leaves. The little, cute girl packs some of her clothes and also takes those two action figures and kisses them with a gentle smile as she takes them inside her little backpack.

Soon, both the dad and the daughter take a rickshaw and leave. The journey is slow but calm and comfortable. There are hilly areas, grassy lands, rough grounds, gentle winds but nothing distracts the heart-broken panda from looking outside while thinking about the past mistakes on the inside.

Meanwhile, little Ming is pretty busy playing with her two most favorite wooden action figures i.e. her mom and her dad. Like other children of her age, she is not concerned with what is happening around her. The little kid is only playing without caring about the world around her.

That panda's eyes fall at once at that little happy doll and a little but bright and shiny smile appears on his face out of nowhere. Ming suddenly looks at his dad but Po, in a flash, turns his head aside.

"Um… Papa?"

"Didn't I tell you before never to call me that?"

"Ming uh… Ming wanted to know what Mama was like."

That one sentence recalls some very grief-filled and despairing moments from Po's past as he is suddenly surprised. The panda, after clearing his throat, replies in a solemn tone,"I… I dunno. I… dunno. Just-Just play with your action figures. Don't disturb me."

"S-Sorry, Papa." That little girl then sits down quietly with a sorrowful face.

Soon, as the time passes, both the panda and her daughter reach a vast field of canola flowers, a very beautiful field totally yellow as far as the eye can see. It is almost noon by now and the sun is on the verge of drowning in a corner. The beautiful sky is now orange and red.

Po and Ming both reach there on foot. The panda looks here and there but can't find Shifu anywhere around.

"Shifu isn't here yet. Guess, I've gotta wait for him for a while."

The panda then eases up at a tree when he sits down. Xiao Ming takes out those two action figures again and runs towards that yellow field. Po, meanwhile, just sees her daughter play with her wooden figures in that dense field.

Out of nowhere, another memory hits his mind. His daughter seems to him just like his long lost wife Tigress and at once, he startles and gets up.

"MING!" The tensed panda suddenly rushes on seeing her daughter fall down and disappear from his sight but when Po reaches there, he sees her daughter finding something on the ground.

"Ming, are you alright?"

Watching his suffocating dad in a really tensed and exhausted shape, she turns around and looks at her dad with mournful eyes,"Papa, Ming lost it. Ming... lost mama Ti."

"Don't worry. I'll buy you another one, a good one!" Po comforts her only child and unlike before, talks in a gentle and soothing manner.

"No. I need that one." Her voice wavers too much as if about to cry.

"Ming... I… I can't bring that one back 'cuz in this vast and messed up field, it's gone forever."

"No. Ming-Ming needs the same one."

"But why, Ming?" The voice of that panda is broken just as him himself.

"If Ming loses mama Ti now then what will papa Po do without her?"

Those few words shake Po from head to toe, and he collapses on the ground with his head bowed down and eyes full of tears.

Ming continues,"Mama Ti belonged to papa Po once and that's why Ming does not want to replace someone else with papa Po."

"Ming… You were lonely, right?" The wavering voice of Po as he sniffles.

"Yes, papa."

"Don't worry. Now your papa is here so everything is gonna be alright. When we two will be together, mom will surely be happy to see us."

Both the daughter and the dad are on the verge of tears but ware bowing down their heads as if hiding their own tears from each other.

"Papa?"

"Y-Yes? Do-Do you need something else?"

"Is-Is it okay… to let go now?"

With the hazy eyes filled with limitless sorrows, Po looks at her little Ming and moves forward his trembling hand towards her daughter and gently put it on her head.

In the same wavering voice, the cute girl speaks,"Papa Ping said that the places Ming can cry are bathroom and…"

"And?"

"And in papa's arms."

The panda melts and suddenly hugs her very own child and bursts into tears,"Yes… Yes, Ming, you can cry! Don't hold it anymore! You can cry!" and the little girl bursts into tears too. Now, both the daughter and the dad are crying their heart out.

The panda constantly apologizes,"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Ming! I've been a bad daddy this whole! I'm sorry!"

The bond between the two is now so strong that they just don't want to let go of each other. Sniffing and crying while holding tightly each other, the time goes on like this.

"So, I see you've finally arrived, panda!" An old but familiar voice.

When Po turns around, he finds out Shifu standing outside the fields, with a kind smile on his face. Both Ming and Po holding hands, walk towards him with the same smile on their faces but suddenly the soft and broken heart of the panda shatters when Shifu says,"Po, you've done a great job in bringing her here. Now, you can leave her and go."

"But I…" Po groans,"I want to…"

"Hm? You want to what?"

"Please, Shifu, don't go so much hard on me. I want her to stay with me forever! I'll be a good dad, I promise. I'll do anything for her. I promise!"

"There's a reason this field is called the Field of Memories. You recalled those memories, didn't you?"

"Yeah." Po removes the tears and continues,"The field where I first proposed Tigress. How come I forget this place?"

"Well, you can keep Ming if you want too and by the way, the Jade Palace still waits for the Dragon Warrior."

"T-Thanks, Shifu." The concerned pandas starts crying and sniffing again,"Thanks, Master Shifu!"

The day passes and the night comes soon. That night, the three spends it somewhere in an inn nearby. Ming sleeps holding the wooden figure of her dad alongside Po, and when Po sees her like that, he even gets more close to her and covers her only child with his fluffy arms and whispers,"Don't worry. Your papa Po will always be there for you and with you". Both sleep a peaceful night.

The next day, the three get ready and set out again for the Valley of Peace. During their journey, little Ming asks again but really frankly this time,"Papa, Ming wants to know what Mama Ti was like."

With a charming grin on that fluffy, plump face, he looks at Shifu. Shifu gently nods his head and Po then rejoices,"Your mama Tigress, my first and last love, she was the best mama in the world because she gave you birth." Out of happiness, the little girl giggles.

Po continues,"You know what? The very first time, I proposed her in the Fields of Memories. She was the strongest, the Hard-Core! We fought together, laughed together, went through bad times together and then…" The tragic memory of Tigress' death, Po recalls that again and right after that, he recalls the shining and ever-green smile of Tigress that leaves Po with no words but only some tears in his eyes again. The smile on his face fades away.

"And then… And then she…" literally, the panda starts weeping. His plump face turns wet again as those glittering tears trickle down his cheeks. Ming hugs her tightly. Those hazy eyes look at that little girl and what they found is that little Ming is weeping too.

"Hey, why are you crying?!" Po groans while removing her little, drop-like tears from those big, cute eyes. He rejoices again,"Don't be such an idiot. Now, let me tell you, your mama and I kicked the butts of many enemies together…" and the whole journey, Po keeps telling different stories about Tigress. Shifu too enjoys those stories.

" _So now I know, the Field of Memories, it was just another excuse for reminding me what I lost years ago but because of that, I gained it again. Tigress, I promise I'm not gonna lose it this time!"_ Within, Po makes a very strong promise to himself.

Soon, they reach the Valley of Peace. Ming goes to the Jade Palace with Shifu, waiting for his panda dad. Old Ping is in his home, cutting some vegetables and making some noodles as usual. The door of his house opens and come out of it a familiar voice,"Is there a vacancy for another cook here?"

The Old goose is surprised on hearing that same voice he heard before. He replies as he turns around,"There's always a place for cute panda inside this kitchen and inside this heart." Behind him is standing Po with his belongings in a bag and some food stuff in a basket.

Po takes down everything and both the goose and the panda then rush at each other and firmly hug each other. The moment is filled with love and the eyes are filled with gleaming tears.

"I-I'm sorry, dad! I never realize what I was losing! I thought by staying away, it'll be fine, I'll be with myself but the pain, it never ended! I lost everything, even my own self! I'm really sorry!"

"It's okay, son. Don't worry. I'll be here with you, forever, and ever, and ever."

"I-I love you, dad!"

"I love you too, son!" Both then look at each other for a while with love. Ping then chimes,"Ah! When you were away, I found out your most favorite doll." And from somewhere, he draws out Tigress' action figure.

Po takes that and mumbles while moving his hand with affection on that wooden figure,"This is not a doll, dad. This is action figure. My Ti, my Ming's mama, the Hard-Core."

Days and nights are then passed like this. Now, Po has regained again those lost relations. Sometimes he cooks at Ping's shop and mostly he's there in the Jade Palace, teaching the kids of the valley Kung Fu along with her kid Ming. He regains his fame of the Dragon Warrior again and now, his life goes on filled with happiness.


	4. Chapter 4: And Then

Days and months pass, and the season changes. The breeze is now cold, and the sky is hazy. All the species are now wearing warm cloths everywhere. Rich is with many customers the noodle's shop.

The Jade Palace that was all empty and gloomy once, is now cheering with the shouts of the Dragon Warrior and his disciples. The fame and the name that was lost years ago, is now regained. The panda is now healthy and happy as he used to be, and her little daughter Ming, she is now gripping good hold on Kung Fu.

The peaceful eyes of Shifu look at Po loving his daughter as they both play with the two action figures at night, in Tigress' room in the barracks, and a dim smile appears on the face.

" _Po, can you stop with your stupid jokes?"_ Po imitates Tigress' while moving gently her action figure.

" _No, Tigress. Shifu says my jokes are the best jokes around the whole world!"_ Her little daughter imitates Po while playing with his action figure.

" _Seriously? Shifu?"_

 _"Yes! Let me tell you another joke that Shifu told me!"_

 _"Po, I'm done with these stupid jokes."_

 _"Great! Now listen! Why did Mr. Chicken cross the road?"_

 _"I don't know."_

 _"Because he wanted to learn Kung Fu! Haha! See!"_

 _"I doubt Shifu would say something like this."_

Both the daughter and the dad are having fun and pretty good time that Shifu comes inside. Xiao Ming cheers,"Papa Fu!" and hugs him. The red panda then cuddles her. Little Ming can now pronounce his me correct but still calls him Fu out of love.

"I see," Shifu remarks,"you've done a good job in here, Panda."

Po giggles,"Thanks, Shifu. It's still hard but fun imitating her mother."

"Tigress," Shifu murmurs,"was a great woman." as he looks at little Ming with the loving eyes. "By the way, you're doing good at playing her part, Po."

"Yeah." the concerned panda looks at her daughter,"Maybe I am."

"Ming," Shifu asks,"Do you know where the dead people, the good one go after they die?"

"No. Where do they go, papa Fu?" In her cute voice, Ming asks.

"To the Spirit world, my little lotus. And there also are rumors that people can return from there too if their loved ones call them."

"Really?"

"Yes. But those are rumors so we can't completely believe them."

The little baby becomes a little sad as she listens that, and asks,"So mama won't return then?"

"She will if you call her with your heart."

Little Ming chimes,"Ming will then call her! And mama will then come back! Yay!" The little girl yells.

A smiles crosses the face of the panda watching the whole scene.

"So Ming," Shifu continues,"I'll tell you more about your mother..."

Looking at the action figure of her wife, Po gently whispers,"You don't have to worry, Ti. Everything will go easy. I'll never let any hard stuff cover her. I promise." and then cuddles that wooden figure.

After some days, while Po trains many little, cute cubs of different species, during the yells, kicks, and punches, the little Ming fades away and fells to the ground all of a sudden.

The panda, leaving the rest of the training, rushes to her,"Ming!" and catches her.

"P-Papa..." The wavering and fading voice of little Ming, and right after that, she faints.

"Y-Yes, Ming! I'm here! I'm right here! Don't worry! I've got you! I've..." But the voice of the panda dims and fades too as the eyes close.

When Ming opens her eyes, she finds herself covered in the walls of a hospital.

"Ming, how are you feeling now?" The desperate voice of her papa touches the ears. Beside her stands his dumpling-faced dad covered with sorrow but still having a layer of relief on the face.

"Y-Yeah. I'm fine, papa."

"Master Po!" The lady doctor bunny calls the panda, and when the panda goes, she mutters something so horrible that totally breaks the loving heart of the panda, shattering to pieces. All of the sorrows appear out of nowhere, like the dark, pitch-black clouds appearing on the bright and shiny sky of the day.

Head bowed in despair, mournful eyes filled with tears of grief almost about to shed, the panda comes out of the room, leaving Shifu with her daughter. Li and Ping keep waiting that they both rush together when they sight their only son.

"Son," Dad goose asks,"What happened to Ming?" but Po doesn't reply as he is suffering from some great tragedy.

"Po," Li then gently asks,"Tell us what happened inside. What's the matter? Why are you so sad?"

The panda fells on his knees and cries,"Not a single promise... Not even a single promise I can keep! Why does it have to be like this?! Why do I deserve this?!"

The grief-filled tears trickle down the fluffy cheeks as the poor panda cries. Watching their poor son go through so much trouble all alone, both the goose and the panda dad becomes mournful too. Everything goes black and white.

"Po," the panda dad gently asks,"What did the doctor say? If you won't tell us, how shall we know?"

Po sniffles,"The doctor told me that Ming has been affected with the same disease that her mother was affected from. There's no medicine to save her life. Even the medicine she was given, is all out. If we don't do something early, just like her mother, she'll... she'll..." and the hopeless, miserable panda then bursts into tears.

This brings out tears in their eyes too, and they both then hug the ill panda together, comforting him.

Po cries,"First Tigress, and now... our daughter... Why?!"

"We'll find a way, son." Li murmurs with affection,"We'll find a way to snap out of it."

Po then, for letting all of his worries and stress out, hugs his both dads too, and then even more tears he sheds. Ping starts patting his son out of love.

Many days have passed now. The days are now even more colder, the haze is covering all the place, the cold breeze is taking away the rusted leaves somewhere far away. In these days so much freezing, the people of the whole valley are now staying in their warm houses.

The panda dad, for the sake of her daughter, has taken a hiatus for a while from teaching Kung Fu, and now gives all of her time to her daughter.

He remains there, every minute, every second with her daughter, giving her what the little girl needs, doing the best of what a father can do but he has now worked out himself so much that he has gone to the same previous ill state again.

Ming, even though discharged from the hospital days ago, still goes through the same condition. She still faints suddenly, has high fever that never settles down, and has become very much weak in the last days.

In front of her little, cute daughter, his dad keeps a fake smile but on the inside, he cries his heart out for he can do nothing but watch her only daughter die a slow death. Po still makes her happy by playing with both action figures right in front of her. It cheers her a little. Both the son and the daughter are now limited to one room.

Some days are passed, and it's a cold night where the poor panda is sleeping warm near a lamp. He's in a deep sleep as he snorts. A constant voice from far away, a voice familiar, starts to disturb him, finally ends up waking him. It appears to be a call from someone to someone else.

The panda, as he wakes up, mumbles with his eyes closed,"What... is that? Can't it just shut up?!" but when the panda opens slowly his eyes and checks forth her daughter, what he finds astounds him to death. The astounded panda finds nothing in the blanket of her little daughter! The blanket all scattered but nothing inside of it! Her only little daughter, she's not there!

It terrifies the heart-broken Po so much that he startles at first, but then, he gets up and rushes out without wearing any warm stuff, following the constant calls.

"Ming!" the terrified panda cries out,"Where are you?! Papa's here! Ming!" but no reply from the little girl. All Po hears are the same calls again and over again. The panda rushes through the palace, almost all of it but finds nowhere her beloved daughter! Finally, the suffocating panda ends up spotting her daughter under the Peach tree of Heavenly Wisdom!

He finds her calling loudly her mom,"Mama! Ming wants to see you again! Ming is here! Come back, mama! Mama!" The panda, without wasting a moment, rushes and grabs her,"What are you doing out here, Ming?! It's so cold!"

Ming, at first, is startled, considering his dad someone else, but then she eases and speaks,"Ming is calling back mama Ti! Ming wants to see her again!" Her breathe can be seen as a little white cloud. Po, in that night filled with the moonlight, then catches the gleam of those little crystal tears in her big, deer-like eyes, almost about to be shed.

"Don't-Don't cry, my little baby. Papa is here, okay." The panda wipes her tears with his fluffy thumb, and adds,"Let's-Let's go back."

"Ming has been calling mom from a few days but mama is not coming!"

The panda is left totally shocked when he knows that her daughter always came out on all the previous nights and called out to her mother. "So… So you were right here, every single night, weren't you?" the panda asks with his head bowed down in sadness.

"Y-Yes! Ming always waits here for mama Ti but mama never comes here! Ming calls mama but mama never comes! Papa Fu said that mama will come if Ming calls her with heart!"

The panda, meanwhile, becomes weaker and weaker, shattering into pieces while listening to the painful words of her daughter. His eyes become all hazy, and a few tears drips on the ground, and his body, all shaky as he whimpers and sobs. Both the dad and the daughter are in the same intense pain, and nothing seems to heal them.

"Papa?" the gentle voice asks,"Will Ming never see mama Ti again?"

The panda groans,"I… I'm sorry, Ming! I cannot bring mama back! I'm not a good papa! I'll never be a good papa!"

Watching his dad weeping and sobbing on his own, little Ming realizes her mistake, and then hugs his dad as she gently mumbles,"Papa, do not hold it any further. You can cry in my arms." The panda gently raises his head, looks at her daughter with his painful eyes, and then hugs her and cries his heart out,"Forgive me, Ming! Please, forgive me!"

"It's okay, papa." The little intelligent girl gently whispers,"Papa Fu said that it is just a rumor so Ming will not believe it any further." This brings even more tears in his eyes, and the ill panda hugs her child even more firmly, letting all of his pain out. The tears also shed from those little, cute eyes but she does not cry at all. Like that, the night is spent.

It's just another cold and gloomy day that both are in the room, in the barracks. Shifu has gone out again 'cause of some work to another village far away. The whole Jade Palace contains only the two.

Ming, besides a warm lamp, is lying, covered in warm woollen blanket and beside him is Po judging some medicines, and after that, checks his wallet and what he finds are only a few yens enough to buy some food for a person.

"P-Papa." The broken and wavering voice of the poor girl touches the ears of the panda.

"What?" With a broken heart and a sad smile, the panda asks,"Do you need anything, my little love?"

"Will you t-take Ming to the Fields of Huiyi?"

"My Ming wants to go?"

"Y-Yes, Papa."

"Okay. When my Ming fights the disease and kicks the butt, I promise we will go then."

"But... But Ming wants to go now."

"Ming," the panda cuddles her and adds,"The weather is not good outside. When the clouds get away, we'll go together to the fields then, okay?"

"But Ming wants to go now."

"But you are not well right now."

"P-Papa, Ming is well right now. Ming can go."

Fulfilling her only daughter's wish, the panda replies gently,"Okay. But when you're not feeling well, you'll have to let your papa know, okay?"

"Okay!"

The panda then puts some warm clothes to her daughter and a warm muffler along with a bobble hat. The panda himself covers his neck with a muffler and now, both are ready to go.

The dark clouds are spreading over the sky, as far as the eye can see. The panda, as both come out, opens the umbrella, holding it right above his head, walking alongside Ming as he holds her hand. Soon, both the daughter and the dad reach the long, unlimited stairs leaving down to the valley.

"Ming," the panda gently asks,"Want me to carry you?"

"No, papa!" Ming replies in an energetic way,"Ming will go on her own!"

"Okay."

Both start going down, taking one step and another. Ming, being energetic, hops on one stair and then another while repeating,"Ming loves mama Ti! Ming loves mama Ti!" while Po watches her, keeping a sad, broken smile on his chubby face.

One step and another, one step and another, one step and another… their journey goes on slow and steady. Only a little time has passed that the energetic Ming starts to lose her energy slowly slowly. Now, her hops are stopped, and she is now crossing each stair step by step, just like his father.

The dark clouds started roaring and thundering, indicating of something very bad to appear. The panda looks at the sky and murmurs,"The weather is sure to get worst, right Ming?" and the panda turns to her child.

Ming, now, becomes weaker and weaker with every step. Po finds it really hurtful, and the dark clouds of worries scatter over his face again. Hardly can the little girl take every step, and his father just watches her getting weaker and weaker, but still the girl doesn't give up and keep walking on her own two little feet. It really is agonizing for the poor panda.

"Ming," the haunted panda speaks in his wavery voice,"I'll pick you up. You don't have to struggle so much."

"It's... It's fine, papa." The little child replies in a weak, dimming tone,"Ming will go... Ming will..." but suddenly, the frail little girl falls and Po grabs her as he cries,"Ming!"

In the meantime, the gusts of wind start blowing so hard that they blow away the umbrella Po is holding in his hand. Added to that, the clouds start thundering again and over again, and soon the droplets from above starts falling one by one.

Both just cross only a few stairs but are away from both the Jade Palace and the valley. No one is there except the two lonely father and daughter.

"Ming! Ming! Talk to me!" The panda sniffles and shouts.

"Papa?" The voice of the poor little child is so dim as if she is whispering. "Papa?"

"Yes! Yes, Ming! I'm here! Right here!"

"Are we... in the rickshaw?"

"Yes! Yes, my little girl! We are in the rickshaw! It's going! It's going towards the fields!" Watching her little girl swallowed by death, the panda is really tensed and cannot understand what to do. All he does is dying as he lives.

The big, cute eyes slowly close as the remaining strength starts to fade away. 'Are these her final moments? Are these her final words?' The panda has these questions muddling in his mind.

"Is it morning, papa?" the wavering voice echoes again in the ears of the panda.

"Y-Yes! Yes! It's morning! We're in the fields now! The sun is shining! We're in the fields, Ming!" As he talks, the tears start shedding, just like the rain drops, that drip on the fluffy cheek of the little girl, but still the panda keeps a fake smile on the face. He's dying on the inside but outside, a fake smile to cheer her dying daughter.

"Papa?"

"Yes, Ming? Papa's listening!"

"Will you stay happy?"

"Yeah! Yes! I'll stay happy! I'll stay happy for you, my love! I'll stay happy so please don't leave me!" and then the concerned panda gently hugs and cuddles her.

"I… love… you…" The warm whisper in that cold moment touches gently the ears of the panda. It is really strange that for the first time, Ming uses 'I' for herself!

"Papa… Papa loves you too, my doll!" the panda, while holding her to his chest, gently replies in the same tone.

The whole moment is sad. The clouds start raining so much harsh that everything turns wet. In the moment so sad, little Ming takes out her last breathe as it could be seen as white haze, and along with that, the soul leaves the body forever, and she dies.

Po, not knowing the fact, still keeps on holding her tightly, not letting her go and after a while, the panda whispers in the ears of the dead body,"Ming, let's go home. It's raining. Let's go back." but when he leans back, what he finds is that he is holding the body of her daughter, and the soul, it has left him forever!

"Hey, Ming." The panda shakes her body but no response in return. "Hey, Ming. Ming!" He shakes again and over again but nothing happens. The panda giggles but the tears still shed from his puffy eyes. Poor Po goes through such a worst condition. Still, he does not believe that her daughter is dead, and what he is holding, is just a hollow body with no soul.

He giggles as he cries,"Hey, Ming! Look! Look, your papa is happy! I'm happy! Look! Come back now! I'm... happy! I'm... I'm..." and then hugs, and bursts out,"Please, not you! Please! MING!"

Leaning back and watching here and there with his anxious eyes, Po cries out,"Someone help me! Someone save Ming! Please! SOMEONE! ANYONE!" but the poor guy finds no one around to help.

The heavy rain constantly falls upon him but he cannot feel it a bit. After finding no one around, he shouts out at the sky,"TIGRESS!" Suddenly, something even stranger happens. The panda falls to the ground too, and he then losses the grip of her daughter, watching her fall a few stairs down and then stop.

Now, he is no more crying out but all of his tears, they are still dripping down on the ground, along with the rain. He is now calm. Things start to fade, and everything starts to become hazy in front of his eyes as if he's dying too. It appears that these are his last moments too!

" _What is this?" The panda wonders,"Why is everything so peaceful, so beautiful, so calm? Why can't I hear anything? Why can't I feel anything? Is this death? Seems so…"_ The haziness increases in front of his eyes, and everything starts to turn pure white as if the mist is taking over everything.

"So this is how death looks like… _Why did I leave my home? Why did I become the Dragon Warrior? Why did I marry Tigress? Why did I choose this path? It was all meaningless. It's no use regretting it now. So pitiful. Even if the world calls me back now, what will I do going back to it? Let's just leave this place forever, and go where there is no such thing as 'Sadness' but a forever happiness, a forever peace. Let's go there. Let's leave this place forever."_ and like this, even the panda that was once the Dragon Warrior who went through battles, dies a pathetic death.


	5. Chapter 5: The New beginning

**Afterstory 05: The New Beginning**

It's raining. The two dead bodies, one that of a daughter and the other that of her dad, are lying in the middle of the stairs of the Jade Palace. No one is there to come and pick them up. The bodies are getting all wet on their own.

The dead body, that of Po, is lying there that his eyes open on their own at once, and a sudden breath expels out as the panda realizes that he is very much alive.

Many different noises enter his ears as he raises his head. What the concerned panda finds in front of him is the grand master, the creator of Kung Fu, Master Oogway pointing his finger at Po.

At first, the dumpling-like panda doesn't understand anything but as the words spoken by Oogway touches his ears,"You are the Dragon Warrior." he then realizes that somehow, he came back in time where he was chosen as the Dragon Warrior.

"I see you've finally made your way in the right place." The gentle and kind words of Oogway are the ones that touches his ears.

"Master! You?! Where's Ming?! And I- How did I...?!" The panda is all astounded and surprised.

"You should turn around. Someone is waiting for you."

His eyes widen as he realizes that Tigress is there, standing right behind her. At once, Po turns around and sees Tigress, sadly walking away from the place as if she never wanted to meet Po. Perhaps she also knows the truth: the whole thing how she met Po, spent her life, giving birth to their child, and how she died.

She walks away from the place, trying not to interact with Po that suddenly, the panda hugs him tightly, from behind.

"Ti!" The sad panda whispers,"Ti, please, don't leave me! Stay with me till the end! No matter what comes next, we'll survive it this time together! It was the hardest thing for me to lose you but even harder than that would be my mistake of never meeting you at all!" The pandas eyes, meanwhile, fills with tears almost about to shed.

In the background, everyone cheers while Shifu and the furious four are having their eyeballs popping out. Neither do they understand at all what is going on nor does the whole valley present at the moment. The whole valley just cheers for the chosen Dragon Warrior.

Tigress turns around, and with a gentle smile she murmurs as she removes those suspended tears,"The only thing that I was afraid of, was you leaving me this time."

This time, Tigress hugs her and continues,"No matter what awaits us later, stay with me till the end."

"I will!" the panda sniffles.

A roaring sound, in the meantime, ruins the lovely and cheering moment. "Hey, you! Get away from her!"

When the panda looks aside, he finds the little, red panda, Shifu in all anger.

"Didn't I tell you to stand aside, panda?! Know your place!"

Taking a step away from Tigress, Po smirks,"Calm down, Papa Fu!" and then gives a gentle, affectioning look to her Tigress. She smiles back but the little, red panda only burns in anger as he looks at the two, for he knows nothing, just like the rest present at the moment.

After that, both lives together as they used to be: becoming good friends, and then best friends even after knowing their fates.

After many seasons, after many years, it's another sunny day. The yellow fields are in full swing, moving from here to there with the gusts of air, and right in the middle of those dense yellow fields of huiyi are standing the two lovers together.

The place is quiet and peaceful. There is no other sound but only the swishing of the air that calm down the hearts.

In that silence so peaceful, the broken words of the broken panda fills the place,"Tigress, you know why I brought you here but that's not the real reason."

"Then what is?" asks her future wife.

"It's true that we're going forward but I'm still afraid of the future. I know what it holds in its palms. Tigress, I-" The panda has still many words left to speak but something stops him. He suddenly falls back on the ground, disappearing in that dense field.

After a while, the dumpling realizes that what stopped him is actually a kiss of her future wife. His eyes widen, and the face turns pink. With his widen eyes, all that he sees is Tigress' closed eyes. Slowly and gradually, the panda feels the love, the warm love, the true, unconditional love. Po slowly closes his eyes too.

For a while, both are like this, enjoying each other's kiss while staying still. That one kiss really comforts Po that he forgets all his worries. Tigress then gets up, blushing while looking aside, trying to avoid his future husband's eyes' contact.

"Po," Tigress explains,"you don't have to worry about what comes next. I will stay with you. Nothing will happen to me this time. Trust me."

The sad face of the panda changes to a light smile, and he then suddenly hugs Tigress,"Okay. I will trust you completely this time."

That same gentle, warm smile appears on the face of the hardcore as well. Both then pass their time that way: hugging and cuddling each other.

After some years, the same day arrives again where Tigress goes through intolerable pain, and his husband, the panda stands beside him. Again, the panda stands there, holding her hand while tensed about the same past but this time, some comfort places itself in his heart as he assures that nothing bad will happen this time.

Inside the room are the terrible screams while outside are the waiters impatiently waiting for the good news. After a while, the same bunny burse comes out of the room and the four: Shifu, Ping, Li, and Viper rush towards that female bunny nurse.

"What happened?" Shifu asks,"Is Tigress alright?"

"You don't have to worry, Master! Everything's fine! She made it!" A delightful smile appears on everyone's face.

"Tell me," asks Li impatiently," is it 'he' or 'she'?"

"It's Ming, dad!" A voice comes from behind that bunny.

The four look behind the lady bunny, in suspicion, and what they find is Po holding a very small, little, adorable tiger baby with panda colors.

"You even named him, son?" Ping asks.

"The panda giggles,"Dad, Ming is my little princess!

"Ah! So she's a girl!"

"Take her, dad." The panda hands her little girl to Ping and then leaves, saying,"Gotta go, check Tigress!"

Li, Ping, Viper, with a smile, watch the little Ming enjoying her peaceful sleep, while Po and Shifu go to Tigress.

She is there, lying on the bed.

"Master." Tigress murmurs in a weak tone as she sees her father.

"You don't have to force yourself, Tigress. Rest a little." Shifu explains.

"You fine?" The panda asks Tigress.

"Y-Yeah. I told you I'll make it. Look! I did!"

"Yeah!" Po cups her face in his hands as he whispers,"You did!" and then gently bumps his head with her. Shifu, meanwhile, smiles as he watches the two lovers.

When the little Ming turns five, everyone is there in the Jade Palace, in the battle arena, many pandas, many people of the valley, the four, Li and Ping. All of them celebrate the birthday with cheers and delights.

After the cake and all the birthday stuff, Po walks aside from everyone, enjoying the calm air on the top of the stairs leading down to the valley. In that air so soothing, the cheers can be heard in the background.

While thinking something, perhaps the dark memories of his past, a very dim smile appears on the face of the panda as he watches the stairs where he died before.

"What's the matter, Po?" Tigress comes and sits beside.

"Nothing! Nothing special!"

"Thinking about your past again?"

"Uh... Sort of."

"Po, it's not better, you know."

"I'm not thinking in that way. Actually, I'm really thankful that I got you guys again. That's all, and all of that happened because of our little daughter."

"Really?"

"Yes. When you were gone, Shifu told her that yhe dead can come back from the Spirit Realm if called from the depth of the heart. I found her calling you one night, near the Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. Now, I trust that her words were true. Her calls were true. I'm really thankful to her."

Both are busy, talking and listening to each other that a call comes,"Papa! Mama!"

As Po and Tigress look behind, they see their little daughter calling them, waving her hand.

"Dragon Warrior," continues Tigress,"It's another call from our Ming."

Both then get up as the panda exclaims,"Okay! Lets go and have some fun!" and then joins the party.

Now, Po and Tigress continues to teach, considering Shifu as their guide. Aling with that, Po also teaches her daughter some cooking stuff. The four: Crane, Mantis, Viper, and Monkey also teach but in different valleys.

Having both the mother and the father, Ming now learns Kung Fu, becoming stronger and stronger, and no disease hits her at all. Everything then goes good, and everyone lives a happy life ever after.

The one who once lost his everything, now gains his everything back. That's how his life now goes: happy forever. That is his new beginning now.


End file.
